Please welcome to our show James Tumminia, award-winning actor, producer, and lover of all things Italian, beloved for his role as Angelo in the TV series, "Melissa & Joey" and much more. And we'll be talking with James about his work and how he gets his fix of Italian food and culture in this great city of LA.

As a kid growing up in an Italian-American neighborhood in Brooklyn, James Tumminia knew two things: he loved all things Italian, and he wanted to be an actor. And he's living both.

I first met James at an event at the Italian Cultural Institute in Los Angeles, and noticed he seemed to be at every Italian gathering throughout the city - and there's many. So I thought it appropriate to invite him to talk about all things Italian, in addition to his life and career, as part of Italian-American Heritage Month.

James studied Italian at Georgetown, which led him to living, studying, and working in Florence. He played Mario in "Two Scoops of Italy" a Hallmark film, and has been involved on the producer side of many projects, including, "Love, Guilda," "1st Strike," and many more.

James said he feels the guidance of his ancestral grandparents, all four born in Italy, and he became an Italian citizen in 2009. He's currently working on a project he's super excited about, "PER CHI," a short doc he's producing. We'll be talking about that.

And while James hails from NY and moved to LA to pursue a career in entertainment, he says Italy always feels like home, which is why he frequents so many Italian events in this great city.

Please welcome #JamesTumminia on all video and audio platforms of #DeborahKobyltLIVE, #LittleItalyPodcast, & #LittleItalyOfLAPodcast. I'm your host, #DeborahZaraKobylt, and it's my pleasure to welcome you here.

We're so excited about this year's Newport Beach Film Festival from October
16-23, featuring over 100 film and 250 shorts from 32 countries.

The festival opens with a screening of Richard Linklater's "Blue Moon" starring
Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley, Bobby Canavalle and Andrew Scott. The closing
night film will include a screening of Guillermo Del Toro's "Frankenstein," starring
Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Oscar Isaac & Christoph Waltz. And for the International
Film category, the Italian film, "When Mom Is Away...With The In-Laws" is already
said to be a show stopper.

We will be speaking with the creator of the NBFF, Gregg Schwenk, who joins us to
talk about what's become one of the industry's most exciting festivals, including
some of the special events over the week-long event. Make sure to go on the
website for details, but Gregg will give us an inside peek during our interview.
Please join us on all video and audio platforms of #DeborahKobyltLIVE,
#LittleItalyPodcast, and #LittleItalyOfLAPodcast. I'm your host,
#DeborahZaraKobylt, and it's my pleasure to welcome you.

@newportbeachfilmfest @nbffitalianspotlight #newportbeachfilmfestival #nbff

#nbffitalianspotlight #nbff2025 #italiancuisine

Want to live longer? It's all about our food. In fact, "we are what we eat" isn't just a
phrase about weight. Maura Fanti, researcher at USC's longevity institute, has been
connecting the benefits of calculated fasting and metabolism, inflammation, and a
healthier life, and she says to live longer, we need to give our digestive system a
break.

Please welcome Maura to our show, who joins us to discuss how fasting doesn't just
help shed pounds, it can increase our life span, too. She talks about the benefits to
our liver, which we know filters out toxins in our systems, and she wants people to be
educated to make healthy decisions because our lives literally depend on it.
Maura is from Italy and studied at the University of Calgary before joining USC, and
she points to how the American diet is so radically different from the Italian diet, and
how incorporating proper fasting with certain foods can drastically reduce
inflammation, which we all know is the culprit to declining health and weight gain. And
we don't have to fast all day. Maura gives us practical tips on the best way to achieve
a healthy fast without feeling famished.

I met Maura at an event sponsored by @ItalyInLA and @IICLosAngeles, and we
spent some time discussing how to get people to make healthy, which is often difficult,
but perhaps approaching from a clinical perspective might be more beneficial. We'll
talk about that, in addition to her early work in Italy, eventually leading her to Los
Angeles. And she's one of our featured guests as part of Italian Heritage Month.
Please welcome Maura Fanti to our #LittleItalyPodcast, #LittleItalyOfLAPodcast, &
#DeborahKobyltLIVE. I'm your host, #DeborahZaraKobylt, and I thank you for joining
us.

@maurafanti #food #italianheritage